**Jeyaraj Pradeep Kumar**

Department of Production Engineering, PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore 641 004, Tamil Nadu, India; jp.psgtech@gmail.com; Tel.: +91-944-387-2965

Received: 31 May 2018; Accepted: 12 June 2018; Published: 14 June 2018

**Abstract:** The temperature distribution occurring at the interface while joining a simple electrical contact comprising of a copper wire and a copper sheet using ultrasonic metal welding was analyzed using finite element method. Heat flux due to plastic deformation and friction was calculated and provided as input load for simulation of temperature distribution. The results of temperature obtained from simulation are found to be in good agreement with the results of temperature from experiments measured using thermocouple. Special focus was given to how the heat generated at the wire–sheet interface affect the strength of the joint in tension. With the knowledge of heat generated at the interface while welding, it is possible to control the strength of the joint and produce defect free joints. Based on the results from finite element analysis and experiments, it is observed that the influence of heat developed due to friction and plastic deformation of metallic specimens has a significant effect on the progress of welding and strength of the joint.

**Keywords:** ultrasonic metal welding; finite element analysis; temperature distribution; strength of the joint in tension; heat flux; friction; plastic deformation; thermocouple
